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Former champions Al Gharafa on Friday scored two second-half goals to beat Al Rayyan 2-1 at Al Sadd Stadium.<br />
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Nathan Otavio opened the scoring for Al Rayyan but Al Gharafa hit back through Rashid Sumaila and Abdulghani Muneer in the second half.<br />
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The match got off to a fast pace with players from both sides engaging in fierce battles for ball possession even though Al Rayyan started off without key strikers Rodrigo Tabata and Sebastian Soria.<br />
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Early in the first half, Al Rayyan's Abdulrahman Al Korbi was shown a yellow card for a reckless tackle on Al Gharafa skipper Fahad Al Shammari in the 9th minute.<br />
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In the 14th minute, Al Rayyan grabbed the lead with a well-timed move at Al Sadd Stadium. <br />
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Myongin Koh curled in a beautiful pass for Nathan who produced a great snap-header to deflect the ball past goalkeeper Hassan Ali.<br />
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In the 20th minute, Al Rayyan's Sumaila was shown a yellow card by the referee for a rough sliding tackle on Al Rayyan's Ahmed Alaaedin as the robust nature of the match continued.<br />
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In the 36th minute, Al Gharafa's Abdur Razzaq attempted a scissor kick but his airborne maneuver hit Al Rayyan's Alaaeddin smack in the face, resulting in a long stoppage in play.<br />
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Five minutes into the second half, Al Gharafa's Razzaq misfired from close range when he failed to find the target with only goalkeeper to beat Omar Bari.<br />
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In the 55th minute, Al Gharafa produced the equaliser through Sumaila who slotted the ball into an open net following a goal-line melee in the Al Rayyan box. <br />
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The goal prompted Al Rayyan coach Michael Laudrup to signal Tabata to get warmed up for a possible substitution.<br />
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Seconds later, Koh was benched by Laudrup and in walked Tabata to loud cheer from Al Rayyan faithful.<br />
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In the 74th minute, Al Gharafa jumped to a 2-1 lead, thanks to a slick close-range deflection by Muneer. <br />
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In the 79th minute, Tabata curled in a beautifully taken free kick but was well blocked by Al Gharafa goalkeeper Ali.